This is an exciting new approach to assessing children's achievement in the classroom. The idea is that children improve most if they understand a) the purpose of their work, b) the stage that they have reached, and c) the steps they have to take to reach the learning goal.

The children are told how a particular day's learning fits into the overall topic. The learning goal may be to write a biography or solve a maths problem. The teacher may give an example, with the whole class talking about the steps needed to achieve this learning goal, or ask questions which require the children to think and talk about the answer. To do this, each child is paired with a 'Talking Partner', chosen at random. Each pair then discusses their ideas in a less stressful situation. Ideas and answers can then be shared with the rest of the class, leading to further discussion between teacher and children, and amongst the children. Communication in the classroom will be improved and children will devlop their thinking skills, their imagination and problem-solving, their self esteem, and their working relationships with others, in line with the school's core values.

Children's written work is likely to be marked differently. Simple answers may be marked and initialled by the teacher, or the child. More complex answers may need discussion between teacher and pupil (DWP). A long piece of work may be highlighted in green to show sucessful use of the steps discussed in class, and pink to indicate items that need more thought. During the lesson, one child may ask another to read their work to check that nothing is missing. To do this, children will have to think hard about what advice to give, and in the process improve their own learning. The teacher will always read the work to comment on a child's progress.

With this new approach, there is a clearer focus on what matters in learning, and it can raise children's expectations of themselves, as they become more involved in their learning.

Ann Wrightson

Chair of the Curriculum Committee.